來源：The Athletic 網址：https://reurl.cc/M3Zz2K MINNEAPOLIS — About 35 minutes before the Minnesota Timberwolves were set to tip off against the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday night, an eruption could be heard in the back hallways of Target Center. 昨天灰狼鵜鶘戰開打前35分鐘，在主場Target Center走道傳出一陣歡呼聲。 It came from the locker room, and the timing seemed odd for a team that was in the doldrums after two straight dispiriting losses to teams that had no business winning in this building. It came from an announcement from head coach Chris Finch, just before the regular game plan meeting started. 聲音是從休息室傳來，時機有點怪，畢竟球隊才連輸兩場，之前還在低沉的氣壓裡。這 歡呼聲是來自總教練Finch宣布之後，剛好在平常比賽會議開始之前。 As the team gathered around, Finch told them they had the chance to do something special on this night. He wasn’t talking about getting revenge on the Pelicans, who embarrassed them two nights prior. He wasn’t talking about closing the gap on the Golden State Warriors for the coveted No. 6 seed in the Western Conference playoff chase. He was talking about doing something for one of their own and a family that has been through hell. 當球隊球員都聚在一起時，Finch跟大家說今晚有個機會可以做點特別的，他不是在講 今天晚上要復仇，因為兩天前他們才輸給同一隊鵜鶘；他也不是在講要追近現在C6的勇 士，他要講的是他們隊上大家庭裡面有個家庭一直都在困頓中。 Finch told his team that he was giving veteran forward Joe Ingles his first start of the season, even though this was a “must-win game.” As the players looked around at each other, he told them why a guy who had appeared in only 18 of the team’s previous 71 games, five of which lasted 3 seconds or less, was suddenly starting for a team that was flailing. He told them that Ingles ’ wife and three children were in town visiting this week and that one of life’s little miracles had occurred for them at a game against the Utah Jazz on Sunday. Finch跟大家說他要讓隊上的老將Ingle本季第一次先發，即使這場是一場必須得贏的比 賽。當大家正面面相覷時，Finch跟大家說為什麼過去71場比賽只上場了18次，其中5次 還打不到3秒的球員，忽然間要替一支正在危急存亡關頭的球隊先發。他跟他們說Ingles 的太太跟三個小孩這禮拜來看他，而上一場他們打爵士的比賽發生了一個人生中的奇蹟。 He told them how Ingles’ 8-year-old son, Jacob, has autism, and how he had never been able to sit through the sensory overload of an NBA game from start to finish. He told them that on Sunday, for the first time ever, Jacob was able to watch the entire game, an incredible breakthrough for him and the family that has fought so hard for him since he was diagnosed at 2 1/2 years old. Finch說Ingles八歲大的小孩Jacob有自閉症，他從來就沒有辦法看完一整場NBA比賽，因 為這對他是知覺過度負荷 (sensory overload)，但是上一場對爵士的比賽，Jacob第一 次看完整場比賽，這是自從他兩歲半診斷自閉症後，他跟家人努力奮鬥，一個重大的突 破。 There was only one bummer: Ingles did not play in that game. Friday marked the last day the family would be together before mom and the kids headed back to their full-time home in Orlando, where Jacob has a school that he loves and a house that provides him much-needed comfort. 但是這有個遺憾，Ingles那場沒打。Finch說這會是Ingles這一家人在這邊的最後一天， 再來他們就要飛回奧蘭多的家，那邊Jacob有他喜歡的學校，那邊的家對他來說會比較舒 服。 When Finch got word of Jacob’s milestone, he became determined to make sure that the boy got to see his dad on the court this time. Not only did Finch plan to play Ingles against the Pelicans, he told his team that he planned to put him in the starting lineup. 當Finch得知Jacob的重大突破後，他就決定要讓Jacob看到他的爸爸Ingles在場上打球。 Finch不只要讓Ingles上場打球，他還跟隊員說他計畫要讓Ingles先發。Finch說： “I figured, if we’re going to do it, let’s do it in style,” Finch said. 「我覺得，既然我們要做，就要做的優雅。」 The entire team started clapping and cheering, a response so emphatic that the cement block walls that separate the locker room from the arena hallway couldn’t contain the noise. All of a sudden, a team that had lost its swag, as Julius Randle put it after the loss on Wednesday dropped them to eighth in the West, was reinvigorated. 全隊聽完開始鼓掌鼓躁，這聲音之大，連分隔休息室跟球館走道的水泥牆都擋不住。忽 然間，本來一支喪志的球隊，星期三輸球讓他們落到C8，就如Randle表現的，再次活了 起來。前鋒Jaden McDaniels說： “I would want coach to do the same for me if I was in that position,” forward Jaden McDaniels said. 「若是我跟Ingles有一樣的情況，我也會希望我的教練做一樣的事情。」 What followed was a 134-93 victory over the Pels. Randle had 20 points, six rebounds and five assists, Rudy Gobert had 15 points, 11 rebounds and three steals and Anthony Edwards scored 17 points. The most important person on the court that night went scoreless in six minutes, missing all three of his shots, committing two fouls and turning it over once. The most important person in the building, a young boy who was non-verbal early on in his diagnosis but is now in school and growing and developing and blossoming, was able to watch an entire NBA game for the second time in a row. The only difference this time was Jacob got to see his dad play. “This is the stuff,” Ingles said, “I’ll remember forever.” 而那之後就是一場大勝，134-93，Randle拿了20分，6板，5助；Gobert拿下15分，11板， 3抄，AE拿下17分。但是最重要的那人，上場6分鐘，一分未得，三次出手盡墨，兩次犯 規，一次失誤。而在場館裡最重要的那個人，那個年輕小男孩，在小時候根本不會講話， 現在在學校慢慢成長茁壯，可以連續看完兩整場NBA比賽。不過和上次不同的是，他這次 可以看到他爸打球。Ingles說： 「這會是我永遠銘記在心的一件事。」 ---- 這篇很長，先翻到這邊。 總教練Finch真的很暖啊~~ -- ※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc), 來自: 118.150.55.248 (臺灣) ※ 文章網址: https://webptt.cc/bbs/NBA/M.1742699575.A.72F.html